I wrote this for my business newsletter: Autism Insider. Subscribe for more business-y info. 

I discovered Temple Grandin about twenty years ago, when my son was first diagnosed with autism. Back then, we had few trusted sources to tell us why our kids had trouble talking or hated loud noises. Grandin, the animal behaviorist and autism author, was the first person who explained to me how my son’s brain worked. It wasn’t broken; it was different, she said.

In one of her books, she notes that she has continued to become more socially adept in her adult years, even in her 40s and 50s. She says that the autistic brain continues to build new connections over time if a person stays active.

“It is never too late to expand the mind of a person on the autism spectrum,” Grandin writes.

Grandin is a useful check on those who believe that growth in autistic children can only occur when they are very young. They believe that if parents miss that window of opportunity, then there is little chance for improvement. I’ve never bought that “Early or Nothing” mindset.

Read more at the Great Leap, my autism newsletter